'Once Upon a Time' Season 6 premiere

For all the dedicated “Oncers” out there, this Sunday is a very special day. It’s not just “Once” day, it’s the Season 6 premiere, and with the Evil Queen unleashed, there's no telling what will happen!

The Once Upon a Time community is full of varying opinions over deaths, revivals and relationships throughout Season 5, and hope that Season 6 will rectify their grievances. Many look forward to the return of the one season arc, as well as the return of some missing characters, such as Dr. Archie Hopper/Jiminy Cricket (Raphael Sbarge), and Ashely/Cinderella (Jessy Schram).

Where we are

When we left our characters last spring, they had just reunited in New York. Killian/Hook (Colin O’Donoghue) and team returned from the Land of Untold Stories with Dr. Jekyll (Hank Harris) in tow. While there, Regina (Lana Parrilla) used Dr. Jekyll's serum to split herself from the Evil Queen (also Lana Parrilla), rip her heart out and put an end to her evil once and for all, or so she thought. As the Evil Queen’s essence coalesced, we were surprised to find The Dragon (Tzi Ma) alive and well. Evidently, Tamara (Sonequa Martin-Green) failed when she attempted to kill him. Will the Evil Queen succeed, or will she just use him as part of her "delicious" plan?

The season also ended with the arrival of Mr. Hyde (Sam Witwer), who, unbeknownst to our heroes, made it back with Mr. Gold/Rumpelstiltskin (Robert Carlyle). In the meantime, Zelena (Rebecca Mader) named her baby Robin in honor of Robin Hood (Sean Maguire), and seemed to be bonding with Regina over the mutual loss of their true loves. The only really good news seemed to be that when the Camelot crew returned to their home, Violet (Olivia Steele Falconer) got to stay. It turns out her dad was the Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur’s Court!

If you need a quick run-down of the first five seasons, you’re in luck. It turns out that ABC is providing a one hour special to do just that. It is scheduled to air tonight, Sept. 25 at 7:00 EST, just one hour prior to the season six premiere!

Where we’re headed

So, what is there to look forward to this season? According to ABC’s press release, as our heroes set out to stop Hyde, Emma (Jennifer Morrison) develops a mysterious side effect, and Storybrooke becomes a haven for people from the Land of Untold Stories. Meanwhile, Regina and Zelena embrace their newfound sisterhood by becoming roommates, while Rumple tries to free Belle (Emilie de Ravin) from the sleeping curse with the help of a stranger.

One has to wonder at Zelena’s sincerity, however, when she is seen walking through the woods with the Evil Queen in the following promo:




Sneak Peeks

The three sneak peeks have avoided Zelena altogether in favor of showing an intimate CaptainSwan scene, interrupted by the rumbling arrival of a dirigeable (airship). Fresh from the Land of Untold Stories and presumably carrying Hyde’s friends, the dirigeable flies overhead and crashes in the forest. Regina comments that she wants to know who’s coming to Her town, only to find Hyde breaching the tree line and declaring it his town now, at least since the Dark One gave it to him. And why would Rumple do that? To wake Belle, of course. His motives are always self-serving, a fact he has never denied.












New characters

Fans will be delighted with the addition of new characters beyond just Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde. Morpheus (Giles Matthey), the Greek God of dreams will appear to guide Rumple through Belle’s dreams. We presume it will be in a process that will lead to her awakening. The long awaited Disney couple Aladdin (Deniz Akdeniz) and Jasmine (Karen David) along with Jafar (Oded Fehr) will also be joining the cast, but with a Once spin that includes Aladdin’s status as a savior.

It’s been touted that when Emma is faced with the fact that she’s not the only Savior, she’ll question herself again, and those annoying walls of hers will go up in defense of a childhood secret… just when we thought things were going well with Hook. Could this be a relationship defining test for them?

Other characters slated for arrival include the Count of Monte Cristo (Craig Horner); Dr. Arthur Lydgate (Jonny Coyne), which some may remember as the psychiatrist who treated Alice (Sophie Lowe) on Once Upon a Time in Wonderland; Captain Nemo (Faran Tahir) from 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea, and the Emir (Tarun Keram). And let’s not forget the book of Untold Stories that Henry found in the New York library. It suggested that we may also see characters from Paul Bunyun, Gulivere’s Travels, and Don Quixote. Also, however unlikely, some rumors have surfaced that Jamie Dornan may reprise his role as Sheriff Graham, and of course, fan theories abound about how Robin Hood could be brought back. Only time will tell.

Join us for the Season 6 premiere at 8:00 EST tonight. We look forward to your comments below and on Twitter as we live tweet the show from @celcafe_live and @carissashuman.

Related – 17 must see 'Once Upon a Time' moments from 2016 conventions, part one

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